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February 2016 President's Corner

by Gordy Olson, RCBPREZ

Although it might diminish the riding opportunities for the faint of heart, I guess we should all be thankful that El Niño is finally bringing us some much-needed rain. There is no good reason to stop riding even in less than ideal conditions. As the saying goes: “There is no bad weather, only bad planning and bad equipment!” Naturally, I am writing this from the comfort of my home and my GS has never actually been rained on... only because I worry that my carburetors might get wet and rust up.

As I foreshadowed in the December Prez Corner, the Board of Directors has finally bitten the bullet and voted to increase our annual dues by $1.00 per month, bringing the annual total to $36.00. Our Club has not raised its dues in over a decade. Over the last several years, club expenses have exceeded club revenues and we have drawn down the Club’s reserves from approximately $12,000 to the earlier Board-approved level of $6,000. Now that our reserve level is where it is supposed to be (neither dangerously low nor unnecessarily high), it is time to reconfigure our dues structure so that our anticipated revenues match our anticipated expenses each year. The Board has approved a scheduled of events for 2016 and the total budget for events and normal operating expenses is approximately $7,000. Using 200 as our target membership level (we are slightly below that at the moment), we determined that $36 per year would be the fiscally responsible level for our annual dues going forward. As in past years, the monthly raffle is revenue neutral (i.e., the receipts from one month are used to purchase the prizes for the following month). The raffle should neither cost the club money nor try to generate funds for other club activities. It is just fun!

For those members wondering just how they are ever going to be able to come up with the additional dollar each month, I have the following suggestions:

Take out a $12 title loan on your bike to cover the monthly dues increase for the year.(Of course, this option can also be expanded in multiples of $12 if you prefer to pre-pay the dues increase for additional years!)

Renew your membership on time and then spend $120 at A&S during the following month and use the $12 savings to fully offset the dues increase for the year.

Renew your membership on time and then spend $360 at A&S during the following month and use the $36 savings to pay your dues for the entire year.

Purchase one less raffle ticket each month and set that dollar aside each month to cover the dues increase.(Note:No $1.00 credit will be offered for simply foregoing your free ticket!)

Participate in more events during the year.(Strictly speaking, this doesn’t help you come up with the additional dollar, but it does make you feel better about spending it.)

Drink more free beer at the Spring and Fall Classics.(Again, not really a money saver, but it is a great way to drown the sorrow of that extra dollar each month!)

But seriously. Folks… The Board is committed to operating our Club responsibly and – most important – actively! We have a terrific calendar of events planned and I am certain that everyone will agree with me that the money we all spend on RCB-related activities pays greater dividends than that of any of our other investments.